Ties Of The Healing Blood
by ToTheJourney2014
Summary: Leo's new charge is someone completely unexpected. No one knows what to think... least of all the two of them. Hidden secrets, shared dreams, treasured memories, and forged destinies bring the two of them closer than anyone would have thought possible. Rated T.If it goes into the M category in later chapters, we will warn ahead of time. Co-written with Black Dragon Valkyrie.
1. Chapter 1

This is a story that Black Dragon Valkyrie and I are writing together. Neither of us own Charmed, but we do own the OC's you will find in the story. We hope you really enjoy our story. Don't forget to leave reviews as you read!

Marissa Bassett smiled as she walked into St. Francis Memorial Hospital on Hyde Street in San Francisco, California. There was a small bounce in her step, and she was humming to herself as she made her way into the doctor's locker room to stash her coat. She couldn't help but grin as she saw her name on the small brass plate attached to her locker: Dr. Marissa Bassett. It still gave her a thrill to even think about the fact that she was in her third and final year of residency. She had applied to become a full-time staff member in the emergency room department of St. Francis and was currently counting the days until she received the results to find out if she had been accepted, but for now she was more than happy to just spend her days doing the thing that brought her the most pleasure. She loved helping people more than anything else in the world.

He materialized in the shadows of a stock room, stepping out and blending himself into the people walking the halls of the emergency room area as he searched for his prey. He wasn't planning on attacking her here, not out in the open among so many witnesses, but he knew it would be beneficial to study her. He wanted to learn her habits and routines so that he would be able to catch her at the most opportune moment.

~C~

"It's time," Marcus stated, studying the other elders as he spoke. "She's in danger. We must send Leo to her." He waited for the others to nod their agreement before closing his eyes and signaling for Leo Wyatt to come up to see them. It was time for him to receive a new charge.

~C~

Piper Halliwell was in her kitchen, like she usually is, cooking. Only this time for a minor demon that her sister, Phoebe, had spotted on her way from work that needed to be vanquished. She was humming quietly to herself as she moved about the kitchen, adding and stirring the needed ingredients into the mixture. "All right. So just a smidgen of mandrake root and then this potion is finished," she said softly as her Whitelighter husband walked in.

"Hey, Piper," Leo paused to look at the pot she was currently stirring that had a pig's foot sticking out of the liquid. "What are you doing?"

Piper looked up. "Hmm?" Then she caught what he said. "Oh, uh, Phoebe spotted a minor demon that needed vanquishing. That's all."

Leo looked confused. "She's looking for demons? I thought she was speed dating."

This time Piper gave him a strange look, only hers looked like she'd just seen him grow three heads. "Speed dating?"

Leo was about to reply when he heard a familiar call from above.

Piper recognized the look on his face. "Go see what the Elders want. I'll ask Phoebe when she comes by to pick up her potion."

Leo nodded his thanks and then orbed up to where the Elders were waiting for him to arrive. He looked curiously at the handful who were gathered to greet him. "What's going on?" he questioned. "Is there a threat?"

"Not to the Charmed Ones, Leo," Marcus replied. "You need to go to St. Francis Memorial Hospital. There is a new charge there who is in need of your assistance. Her name is Marissa Bassett, and she's one of the emergency room physicians there."

"Is she a witch?" Leo asked.

Marcus shook his head. "She's a future Whitelighter, but she seems to be drawing the attention of both Darklighters and demons. She's in danger, Leo, and needs you. You must go. Now."

Leo seemed quite reluctant. On one hand, he was getting a new charge, and he already had his hands full with the Charmed Ones and spending time with his family. But the girl was in danger and attracting both Darklighters and demons. This was unusual, and it definitely put her in more danger. Leo nodded and orbed back down to earth to find the young woman.

~C~

Phoebe groaned again as she rubbed her temples. There was that feeling again, the overwhelming sense of pain and agony. But at least she had managed to track it down to its source. It was inside an older brick building that had seen better days. According to the sign out front, it was an orphanage. Her eyebrows knit together in confusion as she tried to figure out why the senses were coming from an orphanage of all places.

Phoebe glanced at the time on her car's clock and cursed. She really needed to pick up that potion, vanquish the demon, and get back to work. She glanced up at the building again. She could always check this out later, possibly with back up in case it was a demon trap like what Prue had faced before. She started her car up again and quickly made her way back to the manor. Hopefully Piper had the potion ready and waiting.

~C~

Marissa hurried to meet the ambulance as it pulled up to the sliding doors of the emergency room. She listened to the bolo as the paramedics rattled off the stats of the patient while they raced down the hall and into an empty examining room. She called out orders and inserted a breathing tube, resetting the broken bones and getting the patient stabilized before watching as the surgical team came to get him and transport him upstairs.

"You saved his life." He spoke quietly, leaning against the wall of the hallway as he watched Marissa come out of the examining room. "You're good."

Marissa turned around, blushing a little when she saw the handsome man with the dark hair. She shook her head. "I had a lot of help," she replied. "We work as a team around here. Everyone does their part."

"Humble, too." He smiled as he pushed himself off the wall and offered her his arm. "I like that." He tilted his head slightly to one side as he looked into her eyes. "May I buy you lunch?"

Marissa blushed just a little more. "Well, umm..." She looked away shyly. She wasn't used to being around super attractive men. Sure, she had dated in high school, but none of them had anything on this guy. She looked back up at him and gave a slight nod. "Sure. Lunch sounds great."

The man's smile widened as Marissa slipped her arm through the one he had offered her. "Excellent," he replied. He led her out of the hospital and over to where he had parked his car, opening the passenger door and helping her onto the passenger seat. He smirked to himself as he walked around the car and slid behind the wheel. He drove a few blocks to a nice restaurant and led the way inside.

Leo frowned a little as he materialized in an empty stall inside the men's room of a restaurant. He flushed the toilet and stepped out of the stall, washing his hands before going out into the main area of the restaurant. He spotted the woman that was supposed to be his newest charge, his frown deepening when he saw who she was with. He walked up to the table and cleared his throat. "Cole?" he questioned. "What the hell are you doing here?"

The demon in question looked up at the Whitelighter and raised an eyebrow. "Leo," he said, greeting his old friend. "I could ask the same about you."

Marissa wasn't paying attention at the moment to either of the men. She had been looking at the menu her attention was suddenly drawn to the interior of the restaurant. A couple of people were looking at her as they walked in. They wouldn't stop staring, and it was making her a bit embarrassed. However, she was determined to have a nice lunch date with a gorgeous gentleman. She cleared her throat and looked politely at the man who had come over to the table.

Leo tilted his head slightly, indicating Marissa. "I'm here on assignment," he replied. He crossed his arms over his chest. "Why do I get the feeling that the reason you're here is nothing good?" He lowered his voice to keep Marissa from hearing him. "I'm not going to let you hurt her, Cole."

Cole cast Leo a slight smile that was full of arrogance. "Who said I was here to hurt her?" he asked. He turned his face away from Leo and glanced toward the door. "But I can't speak for the two at the door." He spoke so only Leo heard, referring to a warlock and evil witch who were posing as a young couple.

Marissa shook her head as she watched the two of them, realizing that they apparently had a lot to discuss. She glanced at her watch and realized she would have just enough time to catch a cab and make it back to get lunch in the hospital cafeteria before she had to return to work. She cleared her throat as she stood up. "Thanks for the invitation, but I've got to get going and the two of you seem to have a lot to discuss." She turned and headed toward the door of the restaurant, walking right toward the warlock and evil witch.

Both Leo and Cole suddenly turned their full attention toward Marissa. "Wait!" Both men shouted.

Marissa turned around to face the two men, just as the witch and warlock turned and zeroed their attention in on her, instantly recognizing her as the one they wanted. She didn't noticed as the two people behind her moved closer, boxing her in and preventing her from being able to leave. She gave the men a curious look. "I'm sorry about lunch, but I really have to go," she stated in an insistent voice. There was something about the entire situation that was beginning to make her extremely uncomfortable.

"I think that's a really great idea," the witch said, speaking up from directly behind Marissa's right shoulder. She grabbed Marissa's right elbow as the warlock grabbed her left. "Let's go!" She threw her free hand up, causing a fog to descend inside the restaurant that blocked their movements from everyone inside as she and the warlock pulled Marissa outside. Once out in the open air, they turned down the alley beside the restaurant and disappeared with Marissa in tow.

Leo growled in frustration, throwing his hands up into the air. He tried to hurry through the fog only to bang his hip against the corner of an unoccupied table. "Damn it!" he shouted in frustration. He glanced back toward where Cole had been moments before, his friend now completely covered by the fog. "You've got a /lot/ of explaining to do, Cole."

Cole simply shook his head as he followed the sound of Leo's voice to where he stood. "It was all it seemed, Leo... a lunch date." He grabbed his friend's arm and shimmered outside before the fog completely cleared. They appeared just inside the alley where the warlock and witch had gone moments ago. Cole shook his head again. "I could tell there was something different about her, but what would a witch and a warlock do with her?"

"I don't know," Leo admitted. "All I was told is that she's a future Whitelighter and that there are Darklighters and..." He cleared his throat and gave Cole a pointed look. "... demons after her. The Elders didn't mention anything about warlocks or witches." He closed his eyes and blocked everything out as he concentrated on his newest charge, trying to locate her. Suddenly, without warning, he cried out and doubled over in pain. He fell to his knees as he gasped for breath. "They're hurting her!"

Cole quickly knelt down by his friend's side. "Take it easy, Leo. Breathe. Try to block out the pain, and try to get a read on her location." It was all he could offer at the moment. He had a suspicion that there may be something more going on, but he wasn't certain.

Leo shook his head, his face contorted in pain. "I can't," he managed to get out in a gasp. He tried to orb, knowing he would go directly to the young woman since all of his focus was on her, but he barely managed to conjure a few orbs around himself before they disappeared completely. He could no longer orb.

Cole sighed, doing the only thing he could think of to do despite knowing it was the last place he was wanted. He scooped Leo into his arms and shimmered with him to the conservatory of the manor. He laid Leo down on the wicker love seat and called for the sisters. "Leo needs you!"


	2. Chapter 2

The three sisters wore matching looks of shock as they walked into the conservatory and found Cole and Leo together. "Leo!" Piper yelled, dashing forward to his side and kneeling beside the wicker love seat. She glared up at Cole. "What the hell happened?"

Leo could only gasp and wheeze as his skin turned a light red color.

Cole decided he would have to do the explaining. "He was assigned a new charge, and a warlock and evil witch took her. They're torturing her, and Leo is feeling the same thing is. Only problem is, it's affecting him enough that he can't orb to go get her."

Phoebe felt like a fish gasping for air. She wasn't sure what to make of Cole's appearance or of the entire situation. She was still trying to get over Cole, and he was suddenly thrown back into her life again.

Paige was absorbing the information like a sponge. She reached down and gave Piper's shoulder a reassuring squeeze, noticing that her sister seemed to be on the verge of panicking. She could see the fight or flight instinct warring for control deep inside Piper's eyes. "We'll figure this out," she stated, making a promise to all of them. She glanced over at Phoebe. "Go get the book. We need to see if Leo and Cole can recognize who took the girl." She glanced at Leo. "Can you call for one of the Elders to come down here? We need to find out as much as we can about this girl."

Leo closed his eyes and tried to summon Marcus, who appeared inside the conservatory moments later. He bit back another scream as he curled himself into a tight ball, sweat breaking out across his forehead as he fought for control to the pain he was feeling. "What the hell are they doing to her?" he asked in a shocked whisper, thinking no one could hear him. "I've never felt a charge like this, except for Piper."

Phoebe came hurrying back down the stairs, carrying the Book of Shadows with her. She held it open and began flipping through its pages so that Cole could see them. "You're going to have to tell us who we're dealing with." She glanced over at Leo. "He's not in any condition to help us."

Marcus stared at Leo in shock. "Would someone like to explain to me what's going on?" he asked quietly.

Paige was quick to explain what Cole had told them as the divorced couple went through the Book of Shadows, trying to find who took the girl. She put her hands on her hips as she regarded Marcus and motioned toward Leo. "What the hell is doing this to him? This is NOT normal, not to this extent."

"It is if I'm the charge," Piper whispered, unable to stop the feelings of jealousy whirling inside of her. She leaned over and kissed Leo lightly on the lips, pleading with him. "Please, Leo. Concentrate. You can block whatever this is. You have to."

"We found the warlock!" Phoebe suddenly called out. She looked over at the others. "His name is Damon Brigand, but there's no mention of him working with a witch."

"And she's not in the book," Cole added. He looked down at the page on the warlock. "It seems he tracks down future Whitelighters and brings them to a slow and extremely painful death, drawing it out as long as possible. As soon as they die, he captures their soul and takes their Whitelighter powers for himself." He glanced over at Marcus. "Except for the power of orbing. That seems to be one he's never been able to capture. Could that be why he's enlisting the help of a witch?"

"It is possible," Marcus responded vaguely.

"Can't you heal Leo?" Paige questioned Marcus.

Marcus shook his head. "It's not he who is wounded. Trying to heal him would be fruitless."

"Then how do we find the witch?" Piper asked.

"Maybe we could try summoning the warlock," Phoebe spoke up. "There is a summoning spell here, and we can always interrogate or stall him in the crystal prison."

"Okay. Paige, go get the crystals. Phoebe and Cole, go get whatever we need to summon the warlock." Piper issued out the orders like all hell was about to literally break loose. She looked up at Marcus, a dangerous look in her eyes. She was unable to get rid of the jealousy she was feeling, and she didn't like it one bit. "And /you/." She stood up to stand face to face with him. "You tell me who the /hell/ this future Whitelighter is, and why the Elders are so insistent that she has to become one of Leo's charges. There's some obvious connection between them, otherwise he wouldn't be in this mess!"

The trio left the room to do what was needed to be done.

Marcus was almost afraid of being left alone with the obviously pissed off witch. He sighed as he ran a hand through his hair. It looked as if he had no other choice. "We did have our reasons for assigning Leo as her Whitelighter," he finally admitted.

"And?" the brunette snapped impatiently.

"Her name is Marissa Bassett. We chose Leo to be her Whitelighter, because he's her grandfather. We knew he would be able to help her the most."

Piper stared at Marcus in shock. "Leo has a /granddaughter/, and none of you have ever bothered to tell us about her? Why the hell not?" She bit her lip, her hands moving helplessly over Leo's body as her husband lost consciousness.

Phoebe came back into the conservatory, casting a worried glance at Leo. "We're ready to give this a try," she said. She stepped back one step at the look on her sister's face. "What's going on, Piper?" she questioned, looking from her to Marcus.

Piper grumbled as she got to her feet and walked toward Phoebe. "Oh, nothing at all. Let's go find this warlock so we can save my husband's /granddaughter/." She turned to look back at Marcus. "You stay with him until we get back!"

Phoebe felt her eyes widen at the news but said nothing about it, the look on her older sister's face telling her to keep her mouth shut. She cast the elder a look before following Piper out of the room.

Marcus sighed as he took a seat near Leo. "That wife of yours is a force to be reckoned with and obviously cares for you a great deal. I can see why you would consider falling from grace for her."

Leo didn't respond, in too much pain to really hear what the elder was saying to him. "Marissa..." he murmured, his voice full of pain as his back arching up off of the love seat he was stretched out on. "Marissa..."

~C~

Marissa screamed, unable to stop herself, as another needle was slid into her body. Strange devices were flickering around her as her blood was slowly gathered into waiting vials from the needles sticking out of her major veins. All she could see besides the devices was stone walls and ceiling. She had no idea where she was or how she had gotten there. "Please," she whispered, her tone pleading. "Let me go..."

The sorcerer shook his head. "Can't do that. You're destined to do too much good. That must be stopped."

"But not before we get your blood," the witch added. "I'll need all of your blood to be able to complete my rituals to counteract the events you have already set into motion."

The sorcerer snorted. "If you count what's to come a chain of events." Then a slight smirk passed over his face. "How's your other little project doing?"

The witch matched his smirk. "Pain and agony are rolling off the boy in waves, but his powers are growing. Once he reaches maturity, his powers are as good as ours. Then nothing can stop us. Nothing!" She let out a laugh that made Marissa's skin crawl.

Marissa tried to remain conscious, not wanting to miss anything either of her captors said. She had no intention of remaining their captive for one second longer than absolutely necessary, determined to find a way to escape. She frowned as she felt herself growing more and more weak as her blood was slowly drained, the wires attached to her head giving readouts on the nearby devices through the long probes that were shoved deep into the her brain. Her vision blurred as the room grew darker, her head rolling to one side. She let out a gasp of shock as she caught sight of three women watching her intently from behind the shelter of a large boulder.

"What are they /doing/ to her?" Phoebe asked as she and her sisters studied the situation from their positions behind the large boulder. Her face was filled with horror as she looked at her sisters.

"It looks like they're draining her blood," Paige replied, making sure to keep her voice quiet. She shuddered in response. "What could they possibly want with her blood?"

"Most likely the usual," Piper stated, guessing quietly, " taking over the Underworld and everything else." She frowned as her eyebrows pulled together. "But why do the want the blood of a future Whitelighter so badly?"

Marissa stared at the three women, her eyes silently begging them to help her. Her breathing began to quicken as her pain increased and her vision dimmed. Before she realized what was happening, a bright white light suddenly blinding her. She looked around in confusion as she suddenly found herself on her own bed in her apartment with no idea how she had gotten there.

Phoebe gasped, grabbing Paige's and Piper's hands while the two demons were distracted. "She /orbed/!" She squeezed Paige's hand. "Get us out of here!"


	3. Chapter 3

Paige quickly orbed the three of them out of the cavern, the sounds of the angry screams from the evil witch and warlock echoing around them. "Where the hell did she go?" she asked as the three of them re-materialized in the sun room.

Leo was attempting to push himself up from the wicker sofa when the three of them appeared. He was extremely pale and sweating, his breathing erratic. "Have... to get... to..." he muttered, shaking from head to foot. He could feel Marissa now that she was no longer in the Underworld.

Marissa tried to push herself up from the bed, but she was too weak. She fell onto the floor and lost consciousness.

The pain Leo had been feeling began to fade as Marissa lost consciousness. He sucked in a deep breath as he realized that he could, filling his lungs completely and smoothly. He felt Piper rush to his side and tried to concentrate on everything he needed to. He had to get to Marissa.

Piper pushed Leo back down onto the edge of the couch, gently running her hand through his sweat drenched hair to push it back from his face. "Are you okay? What's going on?" She studied his eyes as she questioned him, trying to read how much pain he was still in.

Leo shook his head. "I need to go. I have to find Marissa. She's still in danger." He sighed, giving Piper a gentle kiss. He gave her a tight, pain-filled, smile before orbing away. He reappeared next to Marissa on her bedroom floor and held his hands, palms down, over her to heal her. Almost immediately, the familiar golden glow started on his palms and shined down on Marissa's wounds to heal them from the inside out. It was several long, dragging, minutes before her wounds were completely healed and color began to return to her skin. His hands stopped glowing, and he gently cupped Marissa's face between the palms of his hands. "Marissa?" he asked hesitantly, waiting for her to open her eyes so he knew she was all right.

Marissa groaned softly as she slowly opened her eyes. She frowned as she felt someone close to her, not yet focusing. "Who...?" She groaned again, barely suppressing a scream as she felt the hands on her face. "Get off of me!" she shouted. She tried to push the man away and get to her feet at the same time, her heart beating frantically in her chest.

Leo quickly removed his hands from her face but grabbed one of her hands. "Marissa!" he shouted to get her attention. "Calm down! I'm not going to hurt you." He spoke in a calmer voice, not wanting to frighten his granddaughter any more than she already was.

Marissa stared at the stranger, still trying to pull away from him. "How the hell did you get in here?" she questioned as she tried to get free. "I'm going to call the police!"

"The same way you did," Leo answered truthfully. "I orbed."

Marissa stared at the man in shock. "Orbed?" she questioned. "I have no idea what you're talking about." She managed to free herself from his grip and got quickly to her feet, walking swiftly over to the phone that was on top of her dresser. "I'm calling the police."

Leo stood up and sighed, growling a little in frustration about having a new charge who knew nothing about the supernatural... especially when it turned out to be his own granddaughter. He hadn't even realized that Lilian was pregnant when he had gone off to the war. He frowned as he looked at her. "I'm not here to hurt you," he repeated, trying to get her to understand. "I'm here to help you."

"I don't need any help," Marissa retorted as she started dialing the number for the local police station.

Leo sighed again but didn't bother to try to stop her. He had recognized the voice that answered and breathed a little easier, knowing he wouldn't have to try to get out of being arrested when it would be Darryl Morris coming to the apartment. He waited until she hung the phone up before he spoke again. "My name is Leo Wyatt," he stated. "I'm a... guide... for people like you."

Marissa frowned at the name. There was something about it that seemed familiar. She shook her head, not wanting to think about it as she moved into the kitchen to get a knife to protect herself while keeping an eye on the intruder. "Guide?" she asked. "You're a /guide/ for nursing students? Do you work for the university?"

Leo shook his head. "Not quite. I help guide and teach future White Lighters and good witches." He figured he might as well start telling her, knowing he couldn't lie to her. He looked over at the door as someone knocked on it.

Marissa breathed a sigh of relief, hurrying toward the door while keeping the stranger in her line of sight. She opened the door and almost collapsed into the police detective's arms. "Thank goodness! He's in here..." She led the way over toward the stranger. "Please make him leave!"

Darryl stepped into the apartment, his eyes widening when he saw Leo. "Leo?" he asked. "What are you doing here?"

Marissa's eyes widened with fright. "/You're/ with /him/?!" She started backing away from the two of them, toward the front door.

Leo sighed. "She's my newest charge," he explained to Darryl, "but she doesn't know anything. She's already been attacked more than once, but she thinks I'm a burglar or something."

Darryl couldn't help but chuckle at that. "That's one I haven't heart yet." He laughed again when Leo rolled his eyes. The detective turned to Marissa. "Leo's a good man who would never harm a soul, and he means what he says about trying to help you." He sighed as he caught the look on the young woman's face. "You really can trust him."

Marissa shook her head. "What he says doesn't make any sense. He's talking nonsense about orbing and White Lighters and witches. He's crazy!"

"Trust me," Darryl said. "I thought the same thing when I first found out things like this existed. It still sometimes surprises me the kind of things that go on without us realizing they're happening."

Marissa collapsed onto the floor and put her head in her hands. "I can't believe this," she whispered. "This can't be happening. It can't." She groaned, rocking back and forth.

Leo looked desperately at Darryl, unsure of what to do. "I'm her grandfather!" he whispered frantically to the detective before dropping down to his knees beside the young woman. He wrapped his arms around her and held her close. "Everything's going to be okay, Marissa," he said, promising her. "We'll get everything figure out. I promise."


End file.
